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News from New Writing North: 4 March 2022
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Vacancy: Durham Producer (Freelance)
New Writing North is seeking a Producer to work on a
freelance basis on arts participation programmes in County Durham from
May-October 2022 (with aspirations for the work to continue long-term). The
Producer will support the ongoing Young Writers’ City programme at Belmont
Community School in Durham, as well as support and further develop work in
local communities as part of Durham Book Festival.
Find out more and apply by 5pm on 28 March 2022,
here
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Vacancy: Channel 4 / New Writing North Northern Talent Network
Producer (Freelance)
We are looking for a freelance producer to establish
and coordinate the Northern Talent Network (NTN), a new programme for
television writers in the North, created by New Writing with support from
Channel 4. The NTN will provide an outlet for sharing knowledge and
expertise through a series of open access sessions and specialist
masterclasses. It will also be a way for writers across the North to meet
each other, as well as creating a resource for production companies looking
to work with northern writers.
Find out more and apply by 5pm on 4 April 2022,
here
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Spring Programme of writing talks and workshops
Our online Spring workshops are returning for their
second year! We will be presenting a series of online creative writing
talks and workshops with brilliant writers including Anthony Anaxagorou,
Helen Mort and Nikesh Shukla, bringing the wisdom and experience of some of
our best writers to new and emerging writers at home.
Throughout April, we’ll host a series of interactive
talks aimed at new and aspiring writers of prose and poetry. If you’re
looking to kick-start your writing practice, these introductory sessions
are for you.
In May, we’ll be offering a series of smaller, more
focused workshops. If you are further along with your creative practice and
are ready to start drafting and honing your manuscript, these sessions
should appeal to you.
If you are unable to book a ticket for one of our
workshops without financial help, we are offering 10% of tickets for each
session as free bursary places. Bursary places are based on financial need
and will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis from valid
applicants.
To find out more and book your place, click
here.
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Margins to Mainstream Podcast
Our A
Writing Chance writers are starring in a brand-new podcast with
Michael Sheen!
We are so proud of our A Writing Chance writers, who
will have their work and stories performed over the ten episodes of Margins
to Mainstream, available now on BBC Sounds. We'd love you to have a listen
and find out more about their journeys into writing and hear their
incredible work performed.
Episode 1 is out now and includes writers Maya Jordan and Stephen Tuffin,
their mentors Siobhan McNally and Kevin Maguire and performances by Michael
Sheen. Find
the podcast here
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Apply for a Channel 4 Writing for Television Award
Our Channel 4 Writing for Television Awards are still
open until 17 March
2022.
We have three awards for new TV writers, who will
each win a placement with either Bonafide Films, Lime Pictures, or Rollem
Productions; mentoring; and a £3,000 bursary.
Plus, shortlisted applicants will be offered a place
on a newly created Script Development Programme, receiving group workshops;
a bursary of £500; and script feedback.
Writers should submit an outline of an original TV
drama storyline (up to 400 words) and a sample script of no more than ten
pages and answer the application questions. No writing experience is
necessary, and we are looking to discover new writers from Northern England
who would like to work in television.
The awards close on 17 March, click
here to apply.
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Channel 4 Writing for Television Roadshow
If you’re thinking of applying for one of our Channel
4 Writing for Television Awards or are interested in starting to write for
television more generally, don’t miss our digital roadshow on Monday 7 March, 6-7pm.
This Roadshow will introduce writers to the Channel 4 Writing for
Television Awards and provide professional and creative advice to
screenwriters in the North of England.
The session will be chaired by Will Mackie, Senior
Programme Manager for Writing and Awards at New Writing North. Expert
speakers include the award-winning writer and producer Kashif Boothe;
writer, story consultant and award-winning producer Kathleen Beedles; the
writer and 2015 Writing for Television winner, Sharma Walfall; and 2020
winner Samantha Neale, who has been working with Bonafide Films.
Register for your free place here
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African Writers Trust / New Writing North Digital Residency
We’re looking for
writers aged 18-25 to take part in a new project from New Writing North and
the African Writers Trust, which seeks to make connections between young
writers across continents.
The African Writers Trust/New Writing North Digital
Residency takes place in Northern England and Uganda between May and July
2022, led by the acclaimed poet Nick Makoha.
The project seeks to explore a range of voices and
experiences that connect to a sense of home and heritage. The digital
residency will see a group of five writers from Uganda connect with five
writers from the North of England through a programme of digital workshops,
peer exchanges, and guest writer sessions, culminating in a group
showcase.
Find out more and how to apply on our African
Writers Trust/New Writing North Digital Residency page by Tuesday 18 March 2022.
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Andrew O'Hagan in Conversation
Join us for our first Book Club event of the
year!
On 29
March, we’ll be hosting bestselling author Andrew O’Hagan,
who will be in conversation with Claire Malcolm, Chief Executive of New
Writing North, to talk about his latest novel Mayflies, including an open Q&A with
the audience. Mayflies
is a memorial to youth’s euphorias and to everyday tragedy. A tender
goodbye to an old union, it reveals the joy and costs of love.
This event will be held online via Zoom Webinar and
tickets are £5 (plus booking fee). Register
for your place here.
Or you can join the New Writing North Book Club and
get free access to all our author events, plus the books! Find
out more here.
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Young Writers' Groups
The Young Writers
programme has been in full swing this term, we’re so excited to be back
delivering in schools and communities! Our Young Writers’ Groups currently
have space for new members and are completely free to attend, so if you
know a young person aged 12-19 who might be interested, please visit our
website or contact youngwriters@newwritingnorth.com for
more information.
·
Young Rappers: Wednesdays 4:30-6pm, Riverside Community Health
Centre in Newcastle
·
Young Songwriters: Tuesdays 4:30-6pm, Gateway Studio in
Gateshead
·
Digital Young Writers: Saturdays 11am-12pm, Zoom
·
Cramlington Young Writers: Saturdays 11am-1pm, Cramlington
Library
·
Newcastle/Gateshead Young Writers: Saturdays 11am-1pm, Recovery
College Collective in Newcastle
·
South Shields Young Writers: Saturdays 11am-1pm, The Word
·
Sunderland Young Writers: Saturdays 11am-1pm, Sunderland City
Library
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18-25 Masterclass Programme
We have a great line up of professional development
and writing masterclasses for the 18-25 Group this half-term, as well as
the regular sessions with group leader Emily Wiseman:
·
Wednesday 9th March: regular session with Emily Wiseman
·
Wednesday 16th March: Rowan McCabe (poet)
·
Wednesday 23rd March: Matt Wesolowski (novelist)
·
Wednesday 30th March: regular session with Emily Wiseman
We meet from 6-8pm at our new venue, ReCoCo, No. 1
Carliol Square, Newcastle (third floor). If you’d like to attend any
of our masterclasses, sign
up here.
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Independent publishers
Bluemoose Books and Little Toller Books have launched a campaign, Packed
With Hope, to provide 10,000 backpacks full of comforting and essential
items to children displaced from Ukraine. Find
out more here.
Ben Wilkinson's second collection of poems, Same
Difference, publishes with Seren this week. A physical
launch will be held as part of the University of Bolton's Live
Literature series on 8
March, 6pm, at Bolton Central Library. Find out more and order
a copy here.
Painting the Mersey by Maria Isakova Bennett releases on 9 March. Through a
series of 17 ‘portraits’, Bennett connects us back to the place rivers
hold, following the Mersey from Liverpool city centre to the Irish Sea.
Find out more and order
a copy here.
These Walls Were Never Really There by Manchester-based author Bryan Blears is
out on 1 April.
Based on the author’s own experiences of leaving home and travelling across
Eurpoe, this novel is described as a surprising story about mental health,
friendship and redemption. Find out more and order
a copy here.
Clockwork Magpies by Emma Whitehall published earlier this
month. A thrilling romp through the Northern Steampunk city of Loxport,
this is a story of found family, crime plotted over tea and scones, and the
sinister power of glowing gemstones. Find out more and order
a copy here.
Land Renewed is Peter Hetherington’s latest release
which recently launched at the Lit and Phil in January. It
incorporates personal, inspiring stories of people and places and sets out
the innovative measures needed for nature’s recovery while protecting our
most valuable farmland. Find out more and order
a copy here.
Book two in Jan Foster’s Natural Series, Anarchic Destiny,
released on 28
February. This is a historical fantasy series, weaving
together Tudor times with magical realism. Find out more and order
a copy here.
Chris Ord’s new novel Shadowfolk is out soon. It will be his
fourth book set in wild and rugged Northumberland. Shadowfolk is a dark
modern fairy tale where music is a major inspiration for the novel. Find
out more here.
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Competitions,
awards and prizes
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The Cheshire Prize for
Literature is still open with a theme of sustainability, open to all genres
(short stories, children’s literature, scriptwriting and poetry). This is
open to writers of all ages who have lived, worked, or studied in Cheshire.
There are cash prizes available, and winners may be selected to appear in
the competition anthology. Apply by
9 March and find
out more here.
Girton College is delighted to invite entries for the
12th year of its Jane Martin Poetry Prize. This year, the panel will be led
by two judges- Parwana Fayyaz and Claudine Toutoungi. The winner will
receive a £700 cash prize and the opportunity to read at a celebratory
event. There is also a second-place prize of £300. Apply by 11 March and find
out more here.
The International Screenwriters’ Association’s
Diversity Initiative are looking for writers from underrepresented and
marginalised communities. Three writers will be accepted onto the ISA
Development Slate which promotes these writers to producers, managers and
agents. Apply by 17
March and find
out more here.
The BBC Short Story Awards are still open for
entries. Award-winning novelist, journalist and broadcaster Elizabeth Day
is chairing the judging panel. The winning author will receive £15,000, and
four further shortlisted authors £600 each. The stories are broadcast on
Radio 4 and published in an anthology by Comma Press. Apply by 21 March and find
out more here.
The Red Shed Open Poetry competition is looking for
submissions. It is open to all poets aged 16 and offers £100 for first
place. Entry fee is £3 for your first poem then £2 for subsequent poems.
Apply by 31 March
and find
out more here.
The Caterpillar Poetry Prize is open to adults
writing poems for children aged 7-11. Poems must not have been published
and entries are welcome internationally. There is a €1,000 prize and
winners will be published in the summer 2022 issue of The Caterpillar. This
year’s judge is award-winning US poet Shihab Nye. Apply by 31 March, entry fee
is €14. Find
out more here.
Page Turner Awards 2022 are now open for submissions.
There are five award categories, and you can enter up to fifteen
submissions across the different award categories. All Awards accept
fiction and non-fiction in all genres. The prize fund is over £40K with
valuable prizes for authors and writers. Apply by 31 May and find
out more here.
The Bridport Prize is open for applications. Whether
you’re writing poetry, a short story, flash fiction or a novel, there is a
prize for you to enter. There are five categories each with a cash prize,
and there are bursaries available to underrepresented writers who would
like to apply to the awards. Apply by 31 May and find
out more here.
The Green Stories project in partnership with BAFTA
have launched a new competition to create a short video that raises
awareness of the role of fictional role models in promoting sustainable
lifestyles. It is open to anyone 18+ and offers a £500 price. Apply by 31 May and find
out more here.
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404 Ink have three
positions available for their internship scheme. The roles are remote with
flexible hours. It is partly a programme to demystify the publishing
process, offer practical experience in developing new and/or pre-existing
skills, and to provide a solid base knowledge of the industry. Apply by 6 March and find
out more here.
East Durham Creates are looking for a Programme
Co-ordinator to help implement strategies aimed at engaging local people in
arts and culture. The successful candidate will oversee the operational and
practical delivery of the East Durham Creates project outcomes. Apply by 7 March and find
out more here.
Shakespeare North Playhouse is looking for a
Freelance Spoken Word Producer and Performer. This is a yearlong residency
and they are keen to receive applications from artists specialising in any
form of spoken word, such as rap, performance poetry, storytelling, and
comedy. Apply by 7
March and find
out more here.
The Eclipse Theatre are hiring. They are looking for
an innovative thinker and empowering leader to join their team as an
Executive Director and Joint Chief Executive. Apply by 7 March and find
out more here.
The Rock Retreat Residency is for aspiring writers and
artists who want to focus on creating work for children and young writers.
It is a five-day retreat of masterclasses, led by experts from the world of
children’s publishing and hosted in Gibraltar. Apply by 8 March and find
out more here.
BBC Writers Room are hosting an eight-week
development programme called Write Across Liverpool. This programme is
designed to offer writers and creatives at the start of their writing
careers an insight into writing for television and support them in the
creation of an original series idea. They are looking for passionate
storytellers from Liverpool with an original voice, a fresh perspective and
a keen interest in writing for television. Apply by 10 March and find
out more here.
The Arab British centre has announced a new
opportunity for projects exploring themes of Arab Britain. They are
offering £10,000 towards a creative project which explores Arab British
communities and their lived experiences past and/or present. Apply by 1 April and find
out more here.
The Guardian Foundation is offering a number of
bursaries for a postgraduate qualification in journalism. Those awarded a
bursary get fees for MA in journalism from a select university, £6,000
living expenses, 6 weeks’ work experience at the Guardian, a mentor, and an
opportunity of a fixed term contract at the Guardian. Apply by 3 April and find
out more here.
Arvon have announced their new summer season of
programming, the most flexible programme they have ever introduced. Writers
of every level can find in-person and online writing weeks, courses for the
weekend, one-day workshops, craft masterclasses, free weekly readings, and
a library full of no-cost creative writing workshops for children and young
people. Concessions are available on every course and some grants will even
cover the entire cost of a writing week. Find
out more here.
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Digital workshops, events and podcasts
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Leeds Lit Fest is back
for its fourth year and will run from 26 February – 6 March. You can expect
author events, storytellng, movie nights and more. For full programme
details, click
here.
Curious Monkey theatre company’s play ‘HERE’ will be
showing at Northern Stage between 4-12
March. Set against the backdrop of Byker this powerful new
play by Lindsay Rodden is about finding sanctuary in the unlikeliest of
places. Book and find
out more here.
Lancaster’s 43rd Annual Literature Festival returns
from the 8-20 March.
Litfest will be running as a hybrid event meaning you can attend in-person
or online via Crowdcast. The theme for this year is ‘This Place, This
Planet’. Tickets start from £5. To see the full festival programme and to
sign up, click
here.
The full programme has been announced for the NAWE
Virtual Conference 2022: Renewal & Resilience: Creative Writing in
Education and Communities in 2022 and Beyond. It is a fantastic opportunity
to join fellow writers in education from across the UK & Beyond for 50+
workshops, panels, readings and talks. Takes place online from 10-12 March, find
out more here.
Gather Monthly Writing Group is a guided writing
group led by Amanda Quinn that offers encouragement and support for anyone
who wants to get writing and stay motivated. The next session is 10 March, 6:30pm.
Tickets are £10. Find
out more here.
Northern Writers Studio are hosting a practical ‘Tax
and Self-Employed Finance’ workshop, led by Natasha Haws for self-employed
writers and creatives. Takes place on 12 March, 10am. Tickets are £10, free
places available for low-income Northern writers, find
out more here.
Kate Fox is launching her new book Where There’s Muck
There’s Bras at The Bound bookshop. Her book is described as a funny,
enlightening and a call to arms, a perfect rediscovery of hidden heroines.
Takes place on 16
March, 7:30pm, find
out more here.
Mancunian Actor and poet Neil Bell will be reading
CLOG at The Whitaker’s first poetry and spoken word evening. Neil will be
joined by special guess Emily Oldfield- poet, writer and lover of the
Valley. Takes place 17
March, 7pm, find
out more here.
Newcastle Central Library is hosting the Herstory
Festival, in person and online. The festival brings together poets,
activists, librarians, curators and communities to explore the unfinished
fight for women’s rights in the UK through live performance, intimate
installations and enlivening discussions. Takes place 23 March, find
out more here.
Out of Your Head (OOYH) is a monthly, non-competitive
open-mic night based in Newcastle Upon Tyne. It is an event for those of us
who think too much and share too little. They have their first event on 24 March,
6:30-9:30pm, find
out more here.
Join Fly on the Wall Press for their in-person launch
of 2022 anthology ‘Of Myths and Mothers’ taking place at Blackwell’s
Bookshop in Manchester on 25
March, 6:30pm, find
out more here.
Morpeth Book Festival is hosting their first two-day
event. The festival will host celebrity authors like Ann Cleeves and Chuck
Hogan, local writers and poets, and will cover many different genres of
writing to match all literary interests and age ranges. The festival takes
place 9 and 10 April,
find
out more here.
Creative Future are hosting a Writing Your Short
Story course. Whether you’ve written a short story before or you’re a total
beginner, these six sessions will help you explore different ways to start,
build, and finish a short story. This course is for all underrepresented
writers and takes place for six weeks from 21 April to 26 May, find
out more here.
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If you have news that
you would like to be considered for inclusion in the newsletter please
contact lauralewis@newwritingnorth.com.
The deadline for receipt of information for the next newsletter is 18 March
2022.
While every effort has
been made to ensure that the information contained in this newsletter is
correct at the time of going to press, things do change, frequently at the
last minute and very often without our knowledge.
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